Supplication and Seeking Forgiveness for One Who Died Without Praying

Question:
The questioner says: Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success, a female relative of mine passed away, and she did not pray. I do not know why she did not pray. Is it permissible for me to seek forgiveness for her, perhaps Allah will forgive her?

Answer:
If you know that she abandoned prayer due to a defect in her intellect, and she abandoned it in that state, then what is the problem? But if you do not know that she abandoned prayer due to something preventing her from praying, then do not seek forgiveness for her and do not make du'a for her, because one who intentionally abandons prayer is a disbeliever. This is the disbelief that takes one out of the fold of Islam. Unless you know that she was of unsound mind, that she abandoned prayer because she had no intellect and no understanding, then there is no harm. This is an excuse for her before Allah the Exalted. Yes.

The presenter:
May Allah reward you